#57 the dog stars

By Peter heller

#56 sins of our fathers

#55 Fortune Smiles

Short stories by Adam Johnson 

#54 out stealing horses

By per petterson

#53. The prodigal summer

By my all time favorite. Barbara Kingsolver

#51 and #52

Under Fire and The King of Lies

#50! The Meaning of Everything

History of the OED. Great way to finish my goal of 50 books

#48 the Beautiful Mystery

#47 - The Barbary Pirates

An Ethan Gage novel.  Fun read

#46 the long way home

Louise Penny - great detective novel with focus on relationships.

#45 the dust that falls from dreams

#44. The Fifth Gospel

#43. So Brave, Young and Handsome

Great book by Lief Enger

#42-Station Eleven

The premise is a post-apocalyptic troupe of performers wander through dangers and pleasant times.  Very different

#41 the Martian

#40- the wright brothers

#38 it's what I do

I admire the woman but I couldn't endure the life of continual great tragedy. 

#38 it's what I do

I admire the woman but I couldn't endure the life of continual great tragedy. 

#39. The Orphan Master's Son

Five stars!  Novel concept extremely well written

#37 the invention of fire

Interesting read. Great context of 1386 London but I have to take their word for it.  Great mystery as well

#36 Its a long story

I love Willie Nelson.  I love everything about the guy.  and, I love this book.  Because I know a good bit about his story I know he was selective in his memory, but with a life so fully lived I suppose you can leave some parts out.  Worth the read

#35 The strange case of the Rickety Cossack and #36 Piranha

#35 - this is a great read.  Not only do you get a good sense of paleoanthropology but and understanding of evolution.  Very accessible to the layman.



#36 - okay, it is what it is.  I guess I just needed a diversion.

#33 The Narrow Road to the Deep North and #34 The World's Largest Man

#33 - This may be the finest book I read all year.  The way this author describes life and how you should deal with it is as insightful as anything I have read.  Good literature makes you want to re-read the book.  Great literature changes your life.  'Nuff said.





#34 FUNNY!  As in Bill Bryson funny.  Also very heartfelt.  The story of a mismatched son and his relationship with his enthusiastic father.  A must read for anyone who loves good humor, especially if you are from the south.

#31 Catastrophe and #32 Where all the light tends to go

#31


If you are in to macro changes in human history this is the book for you.  It starts off with a bang and ends well, but toward the end you are ready for it to be over.  The impact of a volcano in 535AD changes the course of history.  The most important part of the book to me was the causal link of so many events.  4 stars

#32


This is dark, painful, violent and beautiful to borrow a phrase from another reveiwer.  A most read for anyone who understands the south or rural poverty.  I loved this book.  5 stars for a new writer.

#29 and #30

#29  Once a Runner



Outstanding read for anyone who has ever run competitively.  I cannot say enough good things about this book.  It brought back memories of my track days, albeit at a much higher level in terms of commitment and excellence.  5 stars!!!!!

#30  The God Diagnosis

This is an introspective review of how one comes to faith is well written and compelling.  If people on the fence were to read it, they should be persuaded to work out their personal theology.  3 starts.

#28 - AD 30

This is an interesting book.  It starts out as a desert/bedouin story but finds it's way back to the persona of Jesus.  The perspective of what Jesus' situation must have been like is refreshing.  And the iconclastic nature of his teachings were so revolutionary but are so relatable to today's study of the Bible.  The fact that the author chose a women as the hero makes it even better.    I wasn't a big fan for the first 100 pages but I find myself thinking about the book from time to time a week later.  Pick it up and read it!

#27 The Bees

#27 - Shades of Watership Down.  This is a very compelling read.  Great fun and you spend much of the read asking yourself, "Would bees really do this?"  You just can't separate truth from fiction and it is a sweet story.  Not great literature, but if you read to find yourself in another world, do not miss this book!

#25 and #26

#25 - Voices in the Night.  If you are a short story enthusiast, these will not disappoint.  I know the genre likes to be moralistic and impart some great message and Millhauser is good at this.  But he also has some fun stories, which I am more inclined to like.  He has re-written several fairy tales and I loved the way he let them end.  It is a good read.



#26 - I felt compelled to read Song of Myself since it supposed to be one of the great American poems.  It does not disappoint.  I did not know that Whitman struggled with his own identity in life - I don't think he ever knew if he was a teetotaler/homosexual/bon vivant/transcendentalist.  But that crept into his poem in the smallest way and doesn't detract from his greatness.  It is not for high-school reading, maybe college.  It does raise lots of interesting questions about our society and our purpose.  You are missing a piece of your American roots if you don't read it.

#23 and #24 The Magician's Lie and Midnight Plan

#23 - This wasn't an audio book, just grabbed the wrong pic.  Anyway, it was interesting in that it gave a good background to 1900 Vaudeville and magic acts.  The narrative was interesting but honestly the book was just a little too contrived to me.  Maybe the author would say it is the magic that just can't be explained.  I found myself wishing for the chapters to end.  2 stars.



#24 - This was a great book.  It is written for men and it is a fun, clever read.  I really enjoyed the novel concepts, the plot and the witty writing.  Bruce Cameron has a few bestsellers and the only reason this would not be is because women buy more books than men.  A must read for people with a touch of larceny in their hearts.